Lawmakers defend vote for Democrat arrested for OUI in 2016

Lawmakers say they wouldn't have changed their vote for Maine's new public advocate even if they knew the details of his November drunken driving arrest

AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Lawmakers say they wouldn't have changed their vote for Maine's new public advocate even if they knew the details of his November drunken driving arrest.

Republican Sen. David Woodsome and other energy committee members told The Associated Press that they didn't know all the arrest details when they unanimously recommended Democrat Barry Hobbins.

But they said Hobbins received counseling and his arrest won't impact his ability to do his job.

The Senate unanimously confirmed Hobbins on Thursday.

In 2012, the governor's office asked the State Planning Office's head to resign following a drunken driving arrest.

The Portland Press Herald reports (http://bit.ly/2r86nDc ) a Massachusetts police report says Hobbins had a blood-alcohol level of 0.18 percent and three empty beer cans in his SUV when arrested. The legal limit is .08 percent.